


Story of 2008

by Pieceofgingerbread



Category: virtuemoir
Genre: Angst, F/M, sappy and happy ending though
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-03
Updated: 2018-06-03
Packaged: 2019-05-17 11:53:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,059
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14831813
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Pieceofgingerbread/pseuds/Pieceofgingerbread
Summary: Tessa insight to post surgery and returning to the iceKind of a one shotPlease read the note





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> So I wrote this for one of my higher English essay pieces and I thought with some heavy editing it could be a good fanfiction 
> 
> I might not get a good grade with it but so hope at least you all can enjoy it :)

The drama filled sounds of Umbrella’s of Cherbourg echoed around the arena while I soar through the air. The world seems to spin around me, with blurry vision and fuzzy hearing through the aimless words of Scott, I hear only the wails of the siren confirming my fears. There’s a pain in my leg and I can tell by the gaps that it must look pretty deformed to, I imagine it’s broken or worse. In my moments of panic I desperately try and sit up but I’m quickly pushed back down. My body becomes hyper aware of every sense, the ice cold beneath me send shocks to every nerve, the wailing pounds my ears and I feel the sick in my stomach, rise with the stretcher I am placed in. He promised he’d never drop me. 

*** 

I’m drenched in sweat as I awake with a jolt. There’s a phantom pain in my leg and I’m rushing to the bathroom to spill my stomach contents. I haven’t dealt with this since the 2nd week into my rehabilition process. It’s now been nearly 2 months post surgery on my compartment syndrome and nearly 2 months of radio silence from Scott. Scott the boy who promised to be there for me but was nowhere to be found when all I wanted was him. For him to hold my hand and tell me that it was okay. But it wasn’t. 

As soon as I had my post op scan the doctor told me to not even entertain the idea of skating because I could barely walk and in that moment you could have heard the faint shattering of my heart. For me and for Scott. He needed me to be healthy because both our careers depended on it and my psychologist keeps telling me that’s why my dream with Scott ends in him dropping me. I would rather he’d have dropped me. That way I couldn’t be all to blame. I know this is my fault because my body is failing us and I understand that’s probably why Scott doesn’t want to speak to me. I mean he’s done nothing wrong, he’s perfectly fine and healthy but I’m letting our team down just like Marina and Igor have told me in the past. 

I needed to be better. I had to be. Ice dance is all I know and all I’m good at in my life right now. Scott and I have barely been allowed the full education we deserve because of this. Ice dancing was what I love, ice gliding beneath my blade, momentary disorientation as I’m hauled into the air was my adrenaline fix. But how could I love skating when it kept doing this to me? The injuries, the despair, the losses were all taking its toll on me. We had been together through this process and he worked day in, day out to achieve excellence. So many times I had let him down and then it had happened once again. He deserved better than what I was currently able to achieve. 

I found out much later, when I got back to training that Scott had trained intensively with nothing but sandbags and brooms for a partner and refused all the other ones flung at him. He learnt the routines for the both of us when I was still in my early days of recovery where I struggled to even bend my knee without searing pain and in the intense sessions of physiotherapy and counselling where I often found my mind drifting to the future; if I would ever get back to my home on the ice or if I would be tied down to be in a boring day job for eternity.

I worked hard to get be what Scott needed but I couldn’t do it. I realise it’s because the only thing that kept me going was Scott. He was my centre. Through this ride we had always been together holding hands, and now he’s left me to fend for myself and I was struggling. Nobody dared mention Scott’s name in front of me because it would always result in disaster. The boy that was once my everything was the only person I never wanted to hear about or talk about because his name. Scott. It symbolises everything I wanted to be. Healthy, perfect on the ice, someone Marina praised, someone who was like by all of our fellow skaters, to be with him. I wanted to be by his side and with him on the ice. But he clearly didn’t want me around and giving him what he wanted, I returned the silence. 

*** 

I got through the dark spells of my surgery and I was allowed to return. I wasn’t expecting anything grand but I expected more than a simple “hi Tessa”. My heart broke for the second time when Scott skated away to the centre ice.

Practice was tough and neither of us could form a sentence to say to the other so we skated in silence, taking all of Marina criticisms. Scott was asked out to a house party at one other other skaters house. I never tended to be invited to them anyway but Scott would always come and ask me to go and no one complained because they didn’t hate me, and everyone knew that you couldn’t have Moir without Virtue. I guess that now that wasn’t true because he never came to ask me this time. So I went home and completed the laborious tasks of icing my shins, taking medication and masking my pain ready to put on my best fake smile for tomorrow. 

Only a week in to my return did anything change. Marina had been pushing me all week to catch up, constantly reminding me that my movement showed that I hadn’t been around. Scott hadn’t unclenched his jaw or released his hands curled into fists for a while week and I’m not sure why. I finally learnt all the steps to the choreography and Marina wasn’t disgusted with me for all of 5 minutes. I could have sworn even Scott smiled at me once that week. I was ecstatic for this to end. I knew the dances so that was my positive but the pain of seeing Scott but not having my Scott was something I needed to get away from. My shins were better than before but there was still a pain that needed fixing. I needed to ice them at lunch to relieve me of the stinging from the couple hours I’d been on the ice. 

“Tessa, you not need to ice shins, we have work to do” Marina scolded me when I asked for an extended lunch. 

“Marina I need to ice them before I can get back out. It hurts too much.” I tried to reason with her. 

“Another run through and then, ice for few minutes. But you need to cut down breaks. You are one with need for the most time on ice.” 

I couldn’t believe what I was being told. I had just undergone surgery and months of physio just to be here and she was already back on her bullshit of telling me I wasn’t good enough. Not today. 

“I’m going home” I stated dryly and Marina looked aghast. “Tessa..”

“No. I’m not in the mood to do this today” I raised my voice to a little lower than shouting. “I’m sick of being told I’m not as good as Scott. I just returned from having surgery (emphasis on surgery) and months of recuperation for you. For you, for me, for Scott, for the sport. I may not be as good as Scott but I sure as hell am as dedicated to this as he is so say what you want about how I’m never going to match up to his skating but just know that I refuse to listen to it anymore. I don’t even know why I came back” I run out of breath from my confrontation. I then gesture to the building and shout a little louder “seems like everyone here was doing perfectly fine without me so I’ll leave when you find Scott a new partner you find worthy. I know you’ve been trying so the sooner you find her the sooner you won’t have to deal with me and fucked up shins” 

Everyone in the building knows that Tessa Virtue doesn’t swear and when she does, I’m seething. Right now I’m seething and all the pent up anger over the last 6 months have been released. I’m now ready to go home, satisfied I’ve made my feelings clear and on my way to grab my skating bag Scott stands wide eyed and scared and he’s too close to not have heard all of my speech so I’m going to make a haphazard guess and say that’s why he’s staring at me and reaches out to grab my arm and whisper “Tess” before I can rip my arm away and stomp out the building


	2. A talk with Scott

The cold feeling that spreads a numbing in my legs is the best sort of relief I needed right now. If only it could numb my whole body from feeling anything at all the n maybe I won’t be forced to feel the pain of Scott’s face when I left him at the rink.  God Tessa you have to snap out of this. I shouldn’t have to feel sorry for him anymore, he left you. 

Spreading out in my sofa with a cup of tea and my legs extended covered in ice packs I’m pushing further into the couch with a relaxing sigh. I don’t want to move for the doorbell so I resort to yelling “who is it”

No response but the clicking of my door and none other than Scott fucking Moir is in the room. Somehow he is still taking my breath away. 

“Can I sit and can we talk” he asks hands in pockets, voice timid. “Oh so you finally want to speak me to huh?” And it’s laced with venom because as much as I love him there is so much resentment there that I am yet to forgive. I still nod to the arm chair in the room but he sits eggy next to me on the floor instead by my legs.

“Tess, I’m sorry. I never want to hurt you” my stomach sinks because I think I know where it’s going and I say it for him before I can be hurt any further. I stare at my legs and speak in a dejected tone “but you found a new partner. I get it Scott”. 

He face morphs into something unrecognisable and he scrambles to get out words “No T, never. You are my partner and Marina is never going to change that”. And I believe him. His voice is hard and his face screams that he is. It joking about this. 

“Then if not that, why are you here” 

“To apologise kiddo. I’ve been the worst skating partner to you and only hearing you saying you want to leave has made me realise that. I haven’t done anything to make you feel welcomed and loved and it’s making you want to run home but if we don’t have each other, life in canton is shit” he laughs a little. “I honestly don’t know if I could continue without you Tessa Virtue”. 

This is it. Word by word he is mending the pieces of my broken heart.

I try to speak but he isn’t wanting interruption. Apparently he has a whole speech and it can’t wait. “Tess I’m never going to be able to say I’m sorry enough times for you to forgive me. But I am and I know you’ve been through hell the last few months and I let you do it alone. I shouldn’t have. We promised each other ‘together’ and to hold each other hands”. He reaches out to grab the one hanging off the couch and clasps it between both of his. “I broke that promise but I’m here now to amend that”. And he brings our hand to his lips. 

His speech is so good that even I’m feeling a little emotional. “Don’t let go this time” I whisper into the air. We’re both burning our gaze towards our clasped hands. “Never”. 

I shift my upper half on the couch to make enough space for him to sit and pat the newly made space and he takes the offer. He works around our hands, not letting go. 

“I forgive you”. 

“What. No, Tess please don’t.” 

I laugh loudly at this because it’s so ridiculous, “why don’t you want me to forgive you” 

“Because I don’t deserve it T, I should earn your forgiveness” he admits casting his eyes to his lap looking tired, pained and truly sorry.

I softly lay my free hand on his upper arm and get him to turn to me. “Scott. I forgive you because you’ve earned it” 

“But...” he starts. 

“No my turn now” I silence him. “You rarely ever say sorry. I can count how many times we’ve had to get someone else to fix our shit because you never make the first move. So I forgive you. Because you came here, to me, with a whole speech prepared nonetheless. I really thought I’d have to wait at least a few more weeks until you would even look at me. All I’ve been wanting for weeks is for you to reach out. I’ve wanted you to comfort me when I was lying in my bed crying out in pain because I did it for us and it’s like you didn’t even care.” 

The grip on my hand tightens and his gaze is like steel and his jaw is locked again. “And then when I came back all I wanted was to talk to you. You couldn’t even do that. I tried to not hold it against you because I know you. But you’re here now and all I want for you to do now is hold me” 

He says nothing. Unshed tears in his eyes, but he goes to the kitchen, makes a cup  of tea, tells me to turn on a movie and goes up to my room to get my fluffy blanket that I love so much. Despite the months of pain, he’s still the same Scott I’ve known since 7 years old and he can understand what I need like no one else can. 

In the mood for familiarity I choose funny face because when will I ever not chose Audrey? He sits on the floor and I ask him why. He just says “ice packs”. 

Some time later when I’m fully enjoying my movie my timer rings and I groan. Pausing the movie (because no way am I missing any of it) I remove the ice and I don’t haven’t move from my spot because Scott is already giving me a weak smile and I’m handing him the ice for him to take to the kitchen. In the kitchen he swaps the ice for popcorn and I sit up from my slouched position and clap my hands which he does properly laugh at. The tension has finally broke. 

“C’mon Tessa move over” and I do. There’s very little room on my sofa so he’s balancing on the edge of my sofa as his legs extend and his rolls me over so I’m mostly lying on top of him and he shuffles in so he can be assured he won’t fall off. I let my head drop to his chest enjoying the warmth both Scott and my blanket supplies. It’s the most comfort I’ve felt since the surgery. 

***

”Scott I actually wanted to watch that” I pout and he laughs at me. My movie ended and we’ve been too distracted that we didn’t even get to watch it.

_I reach out to grab hold of the popcorn bowl but its just further than my arm length and Scott watches me helplessly grab the thin air hoping somehow I might get closer the bowl. No luck._

_“Want some?” He muses and I nod. “Here catch” and he grabs a handful._

_“Scott” I warn because this is bound to be a terrible idea._

_”You want it, now open wide and I’ll throw it to you”_

_The first throw misses and I giggle. “Scott how can you miss from there”_

_He huffs and pick a piece out his hand and ready to throw it at him, my aim is much better and it’s successul. “See?”_

_“Okay Tess, sorry not everyone is as good at this” he mocks._

_”you don’t need to be good to throw it inches away from face” I laugh into his chest and even I feel his chest rumble._

_“Teach me then” and I look up into his big brown doe eyes and agree. It ends in us throwing popcorn at each other and laughing endlessly through the duration of the whole movie._

“Put on another one Tess and we can watch that”

So I line up another Audrey movie and Scott groans. I smack him, “hey you owe me this” 

He looks down at me, light playfulness now gone but he has an intense look. “I owe you the world” he mumbles but loud enough for me to hear him before he drops a lingering kiss on my forehead. I lean into him and curl my legs into a ball round his lap and nestle my head into his shoulder. His arms moves up to curl around my back to support me and he buries himself in my hair and it’s a picture perfect moment that captures the intamacy of this friendship. Neither of us crossing the line but getting pretty fucking close to it.

Once the movie starts up he moves his head away to watch the screen but I don’t move at all because I’m perfectly comfortable and have a good viewing spot. He plays with the locks of my hair gently his eyes trained on the screen and I’m so caught up in the feeling of Scott and I’m intoxicated with a warmth and security I haven’t had in forver and with that I fall asleep slowly, curled in his lap and then all at once. 

 


End file.
